Holy smokes!
There I was, sitting at my desk preparing for my weekly one-on-one meeting with my manager. I noticed that my monitor was shaking a bit -- who the hell was stomping around so hard?
And then my desk started shaking, my chair started shaking... heck, I started shaking! Just as my brain realized that we were having a fucking earthquake, my colleague -- who is from California -- said, "It's an earthquake! Get under your desk!"
So I did!
Most of my co-workers dashed outside. I started to join them, but then the shaking subsided and stopped altogether.
Then I got a text from Joe: We had an earthquake! So of course I texted back: I know! We did too! I called my sister, who answered the phone saying, "Are you buried under rubble?" I texted SonnyeBoy in Ocean City, who also felt it.
Yes, we had an earthquake, magnitude 5.9 or thereabouts. I realize that my west coast friends are yawning and saying "Pish tosh! A mere shiver!" But it was pretty amazing for this area; in fact, it's strongest quake we've had in over 100 years. (I guess we were overdue.) The quake was centered in Mineral, Virginia, less than 100 miles from here. So far, no injuries have been reported, but there has been some damage around the area -- a wall fell in Centennial Plaza in Vienna, Virginia -- and structural engineers are inspecting the Chesapeake Bay Bridge.
Of course, the tweets (including mine!) started flying. This is my favorite:
Actually, next up for the East Coast is Hurricane Irene. It looks like it could come right up the coast, which is bad news for Ocean City, alas! I'm hoping that it weakens substantially so that I don't have to worry too much. (SonnyeBoy, could you put the porch furniture inside the house, please? Kthxbai.)
At any rate, after the world stabilized, I kept going over to my manager's office for our meeting, but she was one of the folks who skedaddled out of the building. Then we got word that there was a gas leak in the building.
That was all I needed to know! So long, work!
